What You Should Know About Buying and Consuming Marijuana in California

What You Should Know About Buying and Consuming Marijuana in California

Recreational use of marijuana was legalized in the state of California on New Year’s Day, 2018, enabling shops to sell the drug to adults that can buy, carry and smoke it.

California is one of 8 states to legalize the recreational use of weed, the others being Alaska, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Colorado, Maine and Massachusetts. Illegal use of the drug is prevalent in other states like Pennsylvania, and weed-smoking travelers from Philadelphia to California are likely to be looking forward to consuming legal marijuana in The Golden State.

If you’re traveling to California from Philadelphia, you should be acquainted with the laws that govern the use of marijuana there.

To start with, the recreational consumption of marijuana is only legal for adults aged 21 and over according to The Adult Use of Marijuana Act. Weed shops will sell you the stuff only if you are above the age designated by law.

Once you’re in the state, you can buy and possess up to 1 ounce (28 grams) of marijuana and up to 8 grams of concentrated cannabis oil. Any store will give you your favorite strain of marijuana in a sealable bag, but it’s an offense to carry marijuana in an open container.

If police officers catch you doing that, or if they catch you carrying around an unsealed bag in public, you may have to face charges. It’s also illegal to carry marijuana inside a car, unless the container or bag is in the trunk. It is advisable to keep your bag or container of weed in the trunk of your car if you’re driving in California.

And just because consuming weed is legal in California, that doesn’t mean it’s legal to get high and drive. If you’re caught, you’ll be charged with DUI of marijuana, and punishments for that are the same as those for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Where are you allowed to smoke weed in California? The law only allows people to smoke marijuana inside the confines of private residences or designated marijuana-smoking areas. Again, this also depends on whether the landlord of a private residence is in consent.

You might see people smoking joints and vapes in public, but that is illegal as well. If you’d like to avoid trouble from the law, it is advisable to smoke only in your private residence or anybody else’s. People disobey the law all the time, so being informed is important, especially when you’re such a long way from home.

If you’re caught by the police for marijuana-related offenses, don’t hesitate to get in touch with marijuana lawyers in California who will possibly help you avoid the charges and punishments that come with such cases.

If you loved the weed in California and would like to take it back home to Philadelphia, you should know that while the use of marijuana is legal there, it is still considered illegal on a federal level. California state law allows you to take marijuana out of the state, but you’ll be safer not doing so.

Weed shops in California sell a wide variety of strains of marijuana, and you can even buy weed online in the state. California is truly a stoner’s paradise, but someone coming from Philadelphia can get carried away easily and find themselves in trouble.

Read up on this guide before you make the trip down to The Golden State for a safe and high visit.